Barcelona’s president, Joan Laporta, expressed his frustration towards FIFA after Raphinha suffered a right hamstring injury, ruling him out for five weeks during the international break. This happened during a friendly match where Brazil lost 2-1 to France in Massachusetts last week.
As a result, Raphinha will miss the upcoming Champions League quarterfinal against Atlético Madrid, as well as a potential semifinal against either Arsenal or Sporting Clube, alongside several vital La Liga matches as Barça vies for the title against Real Madrid.
Laporta vented his anger, stating, “It’s frustrating when one of your key players gets injured in a friendly between France and Brazil,” as reported by Món Esport. He emphasized that the responsibility shouldn’t solely lie with the player, who is a professional dedicated to representing their country, and called for FIFA to develop a calendar that considers major club competitions.
“We are fighting for our lives at this stage of the season. It’s upsetting, but it’s a long-standing issue,” he added.
This incident marks the third time this season that Raphinha has sustained an injury to the same hamstring. Previously, he missed 13 matches for club and country from September to November and another three in February.
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Raphinha’s absence might open the door for Marcus Rashford to make a case for a permanent spot at Barça. The England international has found more playing time when Raphinha has been unavailable this season.
He is expected to be the leading candidate to fill Raphinha’s position when Barça faces Atlético in La Liga this weekend. Other potential replacements include Fermín López, Dani Olmo, Ferran Torres, and João Cancelo.
This season, Rashford has netted 10 goals and recorded 13 assists in 39 matches for Barcelona, with the club needing to decide by June 15 whether to activate the €30 million clause to secure his permanent transfer.
In other news, defenders Jules Koundé and Alejandro Balde have returned to training, bringing some relief to Barça’s defense, while Frenkie de Jong is also close to making a comeback.
This leaves Andreas Christensen and Raphinha as the only significant absentees as Hansi Flick’s team prepares for the critical final stretch of the season.